The effects of dietary supplementation of Citrus sinensis peel extract on production and quality parameters of broiler chicken

Abstract

Citrus peel, a by-product of citrus processing is a rich source of numerous bioactive nutrients. This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation of Citrus sinensis peel extract (CSPE) on few production and quality traits of broiler chickens. Four hundred broiler chicks (one-day-old) were assigned to any of the five dietary treatments comprised of: basal diet for 42 days, or basal diet containing 1000 ppm or 1250 ppm CSPE for 21 days, or basal diet containing 1000 ppm or 1250 ppm CSPE for 42 days. Compared to the final weight of broilers on the basal diet (2426.3 ± 120.9 g), the supplementation of the diet with 1000 ppm CSPE for 21 days resulted in significantly (P < 0.05) higher final weight (2692.5 ± 120.9 g), while that with 1250 ppm CSPE for 42 days resulted in a significantly lower (P < 0.05) abdominal fat content (47.94 vs. 28.75 ± 4.38 g). Supplementation with 1000 or 1250 ppm CSPE for 21 days or 42 days had no significant effect on the final weight, empty body weight, breast weight, thigh yield and wing yields and fresh weights and percentages of internal organ/tissues (pancreas, liver and bile, gizzard, heart) and intestinal length (duodenum, jejunum and ileum). It is concluded that citrus peel extract can be utilized as a dietary supplementation to improve the productivity (higher final weight) and quality (lower abdominal fat content) of broiler chicken.